A passion for chemistry: Historical and current references in recreational chemistry and implications for teaching and outreach

Authors

  • Gabriel Pinto Complutense University of Madrid (Spain).

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7203/metode.15.27481

Keywords:

science education, science popularisation, recreational chemistry, chemistry and everyday life

Abstract

After introducing some general ideas about recreational chemistry, here I provide some historical references from the 18th century to the present day. These include philosophical evenings, the creation of institutions for popularising science, and the publication of emblematic books and journals on the subject. I discuss the activities of some prominent personalities in recreational chemistry and analyse the specificities of different aspects of this domain such as varying approaches (games and gamification, science fairs, media, the internet, and software, etc.). These are compared to other fields of science popularisation (prevention and safety, specific recommendations for its use, etc.) and implications for science teaching and popularisation in relation to this field of knowledge. Finally, with the conclusions, I have also provided bibliographical references to facilitate further study of the subject.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Author Biography

Gabriel Pinto, Complutense University of Madrid (Spain).

PhD in chemical sciences from the Complutense University of Madrid (Spain). He is a professor of chemical engineering at the Polytechnic University of Madrid. He has carried out research on applied spectroscopy, preparation and properties of polymer matrix composites, didactics of experimental sciences, and history of science, and has published several books and nearly 200 articles. He is the president of the Specialised Group in Education and History within the Spanish Royal Society of Physics and Chemistry and has been involved in many science outreach activities in a variety of formats.

References

Armstrong, E. V. (1938). Jane Marcet and her “Conversations on Chemistry”. Journal of Chemical Education, 15(2), 53–57. https://doi.org/10.1021/ed015p53

Berman, M. (1972). The early years of the Royal Institution 1799-1810: A re-evaluation. Science Studies, 2(3), 205–240.

Cesa, I. G., Finester, D. C., Sigmann, S. B., & Wilhelm, M. R. (1998). Revising the división of chemical education safety guidelines for chemical demonstrations. Journal of Chemical Education, 95(4), 502–503. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.7b00802

Childs, P. (2014). Using demonstrations to stimulate inquiry and students’ thinking. Educació Química, 19, 48–57. https://doi.org/10.2436/20.2003.02.144

Crellin, J. K. (1979). Mrs. Marcet's 'Conversations on Chemistry. Journal of Chemical Education, 56(7), 459–460. https://doi.org/10.1021/ed056p459

De Azcárraga, J. A. (2021). La nueva legislación educativa: por qué no mejora la educación pública en España. Revista Española de Pedagogía, 80(281), 111–129. https://doi.org/10.22550/REP80-1-2022-08

García Belmar, A. (2020, 23 de diciembre). La ciencia en la esfera pública. Sabers en acció. https://sabersenaccio.iec.cat/es/la-ciencia-en-la-esfera-publica-es/

García-Molina, R. (2011). Ciencia recreativa: un recurso didáctico para enseñar deleitando. Revista Eureka sobre Enseñanza y Divulgación de las Ciencias, 8 (Número extraordinario), 370–392.

Hache-Bissette, F. (2017). Le partage des savoirs: Science populaire ou vulgarisations scientifique. En Les Sciences en Bibliothéque, M. Netze (Ed.), pp. 51–62. Éditions du Cercle de la Librairie.

Haran, B., & Poliakoff, M. (2011). The periodic table of videos. Science, 332(6033), 1046–1047. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1196980

Kale, S. (2004). French salons, high society and political sociability from the old regime to the revolution of 1848. The Johnson Hopkins University Press.

Moreno Martínez, L. (2022). El valor educativo de la historia de la química para las aulas de secundaria. Anales de Química, 118(3), 163–171.

Parkers, S. (1819). The chemical catechism, with notes, illustrations and experiments. R. and A. Taylor.

Pinto, G. (2003). Divulgación de la química. Anales de Química, 99(4), 63–66.

Pinto, G., Castro Acuña, C. M., & Martínez Urreaga, J. (2006). Química al alcance de todos. Pearson Educación.

Puerto Sarmiento, F. J. (1994). La huella de Proust: El laboratorio de química del Museo de Historia Natural. Asclepio, 46(1), 197–220. https://doi.org/10.3989/asclepio.1994.v46.1.480

Richard. (1856). Le magicien des salons ou le diable couleur de rose. Recueil nouveau de physique amusante, de chimie récréative, de tours de cartes, magie blanche, etc., etc. Delarue.

Solbes Matarredona, J., Lozano Gutiérrez, Ó., & García Molina, R. (2008). Juegos, juguetes y pequeñas experiencias tecnocientíficos en la enseñanza aprendizaje de la física y química y la tecnología. Investigación en la Escuela, 65, 71–88. https://doi.org/10.12795/IE.2008.i65.07

Tajuelo, L., & Pinto, G. (2021). Un ejemplo de actividad de escape room sobre física y química en educación secundaria. Revista Eureka sobre Enseñanza y Divulgación de las Ciencias, 18(2), 2205. https://doi.org/10.25267/Rev_Eureka_ensen_divulg_cienc.2021.v18.i2.2205

Tissandier G. (1884). Recreaciones científicas ó la física y la química sin aparatos ni laboratorio y solo por los juegos de la infancia con una exposición detallada de los principales aparatos que pueden constituir la casa o museo de un aficionado a las ciencias, seguida de algunas aplicaciones científicas a los usos de la vida doméstica, etc. (Traducción de E. Sánchez Pardo). Carlos Bailly-Bailliere. (Trabajo original publicado en 1881).

Vélez de Paredes, E. (1860). Manual de química divertida, ó sea recreaciones químicas. Librería de Rosa y Bouret.

Downloads

Published

2024-03-26

How to Cite

Pinto, G. (2024). A passion for chemistry: Historical and current references in recreational chemistry and implications for teaching and outreach. Metode Science Studies Journal, (15). https://doi.org/10.7203/metode.15.27481
Metrics
Views/Downloads
  • Abstract
    585
  • PDF
    106

Issue

No. 15: Volume 15 (Online first)

Section

Science anywhere and anyhow. A journey into the fascinating world of recreational science

License

All the documents in the OJS platform are open access and property of their respective authors.

Authors publishing in the journal agree to the following terms:

  1. Authors keep the rights and guarantee Metode Science Studies Journal the right to be the first publication of the document, licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of authorship and publication in the journal.
  2. Authors are allowed and encouraged to spread their work through electronic means using personal or institutional websites (institutional open archives, personal websites or professional and academic networks profiles) once the text has been published.

Metrics

Similar Articles

<< < > >> 

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.